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Sunday, January 1, 2012

Food Ornaments

Collections. What makes a collection? Lately I’ve noticed on Etsy a number of listings that promise the buyer an “instant collection.” If it’s instant, is it still a real collection? Alison from The Polohouse recently got me thinking about the things people collect. I believe a real collection is one that is amassed over time, preferably with a lot of searching and poking around in all kinds of places.

We seem to collect a lot of things at our house – books, flow blue china, Fiestaware, nutcrackers, dust, dog hair. (Whoops! Getting into undesirable collections!) My favorite collection, though, is one we began around twenty years ago and continue to expand year after year – blown glass food ornaments.

one of the originals

It started at an Elder-Beerman department store in Toledo, Ohio. We had only been married a year or so and were visiting my in-laws. We stopped in at the local mall and saw the most unusual Christmas ornaments in the shapes of carrots, bell peppers, and onions. I’d never seen anything like them. I loved them at first sight, but, as I said, we hadn’t been married too long, so we were on a tight budget. We left without the ornaments. I must have rhapsodized about them quite a bit back at my in-laws, however, because after we were back home in Illinois, we received a package from my mother-in-law full of the ornaments. A collection was born.

There were many years when we couldn’t find any food ornaments, especially since we kept it strictly to vegetables and fruit for a long time. Then one day I saw a hamburger. I had to have it. I absolutely love a good hamburger, so the ornament was calling my name. That hamburger opened the floodgates. It led to another hamburger, a slice of pizza, ice cream, a cupcake, a doughnut, a hot dog, and a fortune cookie.

hamburger #2: you can also see the first hamburger in the lower right corner

For a long time, the food ornaments went on the regular Christmas tree, but eventually we had enough to decorate a skinny, 6-foot, artificial tree that we put in our dining room. Many of our ornaments are Old World brand, but we have also gotten ornaments at Sur la Table, outlet kitchen stores, Farm N Fleet, you name it. If it is blown glass, food, and it looks good, we’ll buy it. We even have a few that don’t look that good, like an enormous, sickly yellowish green thing that is either a large lemon or a gigantic lime. Either way, it’s ugly. Still, I do draw the line sometimes. In November, I saw a peanut butter and jelly sandwich by Old World. Great idea, but not much in the looks department. It looked like a big white square with a little oozing color along the sides. Nah.

Still, we are always on the lookout. Our most recent ornament is a gift from our daughter this Christmas, a walnut. There’s always something new to be found!

21 comments:

These are GREAT! So unusual and all collected and connected with great memories. Makes a collection all the better and more meaningful.These remind me of my small collection of anthropomorphic salt and pepper shakers.I saw the sweetest set in an antique mall with my daughter who was pretty young at the time.We went crazy for the little faces and the personalities of the pieces. We bought them and loved them.

Then one night she found a few other sets on Ebay and we swooped in and bought three or four more sets within a few days. An instant collection as you say. It was a fun memory that we made finding them all together, so I think that is ok! Still have them all in a box. Waiting to surprise her with them someday when she gets her own kitchen!

Haha these are so awesome! Do you partake in the pickle ornament tradition? You know, hang the pickle ornament on the tree and whoever finds it gets a prize or has good luck or gets to open the first present on Christmas morning? It was always a variation for our household. It's a fun one and would work perfectly with your food ornaments!!

I love all of your food ornaments. I, too, collect blown glass ornaments, but all kinds. I have quite a few fruits and veggies, but no hamburgers!! I'll be looking for one, now. Thanks for sharing your collection. Sally

Wow! We have the same carrot!! I love your food ornaments, what a cool idea! I started collecting carrots about 15 years ago, have a lot of different fabric ones and some ornaments. Besides the one like yours, I have a really large one I got at a big mall in Cincinnati. So glad you stopped by so I could visit you! I'm your newest follower and would love for you stop back by!Rebecca

Very fun ornaments! I love that they are a little quirky and not the usual Christmas-themed kind. Makes for a beautiful and unusual tree. I'm not one for collecting things (except, yes, dog hair and dust) - but I do have a Japanese teapot collection (and one amazing big tea pot from a Russian friend) that is not on display, but I can't imagine parting with it. Each purchase was hard-earned and well-thought out.

Hi,your collection is amazing. I know the little cucumber ornament. Lately we have more and more oustanding glass ornaments. But a whole tree with food ornaments must look very interesting. Wasn't that nice from your in-laws to buy the first ornaments for you? So sweet. Your wrote about the flatware with grape pattern. I have a cake shouvel with grapes. I love to use it for savory cakes like onion quiche. I love such special flatware. In USA there exist many nice antique patterns but they are all very expensive to buy.Best greetings, Johanna

Very cool! I collected a specific ornament for years, I got a Krebs "Masters on silk" blown glass ornament as a gift the first year we were married and continued buying them every year. I used to find them at Target, Walmart Kmart but haven't seen one for 2 years. Time to branch out and start a new Christmas ornament collectible! My collections of other things have waxed and waned over the years. For me when it gets expensive, it isn't fun anymore! Great post!

I love your collection! I saw my first food ornaments this season in a store near where I work and I wanted to buy all of them so badly! There was a sprite can, a hamburger, fries, pizza, etc.. Unfortunately, our tight student budget meant we couldn't afford a tree with actual branches so I'm waiting to get a real tree before buying any :p

What a fantastic collection!!! I love the idea of themed tree of food. That hamburger ornament is too cute and to put it in the dining room is fabulous! Truly unique collection and I totally agree with you about the collection - they shouldn't be instant. Actually seeking them out is part of the fun!

Great images of food ornaments. I went to a Vietnamese restaurant last night and they had these little carrots on the table that they used to rest your chopsticks on. They were so adorable it was hard to resist taking them home with me.

About Me

I'm a Southern girl who moved to the Midwest and never left. I like to read, cook, knit, and garden. I compost. I live in a circa 1902 house, painted the color of sunshine. I like old movies, most kinds of music, and NPR. I have a terrific family and a goofy golden retriever named Alfie.